Aftermath
by YamiB1999
Summary: After their adventure in Ancient Egypt Yami Bakura wakes for a short period of time to find both him and his 'light' have separate bodies! The two of them however are drained and pass out on the stairs, but are rescued by Yugi and his friends. This is my first fanfic, so R&R! Will try and update weekly! Yami Bakura and Ryou Bakura centric. No pairings!
1. The Awakening

**Yoo hoo! YamiB1999 here! This is my first fanfic here! Please R&R! I worked for 30 minutes on this, and I hope you guys appreciate!**

Aftermath: Chapter 1:

A cool air drafted its way down the ancient stone steps and snaked its way into a young man's clothes. It made him shiver slightly and clutch the black trench coat he was wearing tightly. The air playfully played with his hair as if rousing him to wake. After a while, the sun descended from the sky and a few of its golden beams shone down the stairs onto the young man's face and onto his eyes. And that was when a pair of brown eyes flashed open.

* * *

Yami woke up in a start and sat bolt up. Last thing he had remembered was the Creator of Light appearing before him and then a flash of blinding light. He found himself rather stiff and rigid and his bones ached from lying on the hard and bumpy stairs for so long. His eyes narrowed as he observed his surroundings. Nothing appeared to be wrong at his right. Then he whipped his head to his left. The sight made him jump.

It was his light, Ryou, on the stairs. _But how could this be?_ They both shared a body; therefore they both couldn't be there at the same time. Yami reached out (making his arm hurt for some bizarre reason) and touched Ryou's arm. He was right- Ryou was in solid form, and so was he. _How peculiar_, he thought. After a few moments, he came to the conclusion he and his light must have been separated after their adventure in Ancient Egypt.

Yami sighed and rubbed his eyes with his hand. Again his arm hurt. He rolled up the sleeve of his dark trench coat and grimaced slightly as he saw his arm had a nasty black bruise across it. He tried to lift his arm again, only to make himself wince at the pain. _I must have broken it _Yami thought. He was about to get up when he heard some movement. He whipped his head and his eyes locked on his light. He was waking up. Yami growled in annoyance and got up slowly. His legs felt like water and he felt like falling to his knees, so he sat back down again.

_What happened to me_? He wondered blankly.

A few more moments passed with nothing of interest. Yami kept his gaze on Ryou throughout the time. He began to wonder where the others were. The Pharaoh was probably going to go to the spirit world very soon now he had regained his memories, but where would his little hikari brat be? A smirk perked up on his lips as an idea grew in his mind. The brat. Of course! Why hadn't he thought of it before? It was the perfect plan. His mind began to wither as the exertion of excitement he had played on his mind took its toll and Yami passed out, with a smile on his face. Before he went, he heard the faint voice of his hikari say breathlessly '…Yami…'

* * *

Confusion, pain, and finally triumph. Those were the emotions he felt feed its way through the bond he had with the Spirit of the Millennium Ring. That was what tried to rouse him. He felt his own panic as he felt the triumph. The last thing he remembered was being chased by the Spirit into a church only to find the feeling of losing control and the slap of realization before he gave in to the Spirit. His Yami.

Ryou sighed in defeat. His stomach felt hollow and gave a lurch for food. His mind slowly began to whir into thinking. The emotion of triumph brought chills to his bones. He only felt that feeling come from his Yami when what he so desired had come to him. And if it was true, and this had happened, Ryou feared for those he knew as friends. He found it difficult to wonder what his Yami had done to them. Had he killed them? Or perhaps had he banished their souls to the shadow realm?

He gave a shiver at the thought of the shadow realm. Oh how he remembered the horrible place. Souls just wandering wasted down to corrupted spirits, running this way and that. He had been there with his Yami. He had been afraid. He had been scared. He'd lost all hope. Like a five-year-old, he clutched his Yami's hand, as if it were the only way he would escape the frightening realm. He'd cry, and Yami would, in his own gruff way, comfort him. He had kept him alive and sane in the Shadow Realm, acted like the older brother he never had. For once, Ryou had liked the Spirit, his Yami, as family. All that changed once they were out again.

He remembered how the Spirit had come out in his semi-transparent form before him, looking down at him. Glared into his frightened eyes till he knew he was scared. Then told him all that in the Shadow Realm had not been him. It baffled him at first, but when with an evil spirit, being baffled wasn't allowed, and so he had accepted the statement eventhough he had not fully understood what he had meant. And then he told him if a whisper were let out of their experience of the Shadow Realm, he would rid of him on the spot. Ryou remembered solemnly nodding, keeping his head down and his eyes locked at his feet.

Then he wondered whether he should try to see what his Yami had done this time.

Ryou opened his eyes blearily and blinked a few times to get into focus. He saw he was wearing a black trench coat.

_That's new. The spirit must have worn it_

He gazed at his surroundings, and then his eyes widened at the sight to his left. His Yami sat with his back against the wall, head drooped down, and his face ghostly pale. Ryou gasped in shock. No matter what he had done, no matter how evil he had been Yami was like family to him. His mind ignored any confusion of how both of them were appearing solid.

'…Yami…' He let out breathlessly.

He saw a smile playing on his face before his shoulders slumped down. Ryou shook slightly at the effort it took to crawl over to his Yami. He gasped for breath as he dropped down next to him. He shivered at the draft that came down the stairs, and went closer to his Yami, as if he were to protect him. He clung on to his spirit's hand as he felt his exhaustion take over and he drifted off, his head slumping against his Yami's.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! Hopefully I'll be able to update next week if I get the time, or quicker if possible! R&R!**

**-YamiB1999**


	2. The Rescue

**Yoo hoo! YamiB1999 here! Well looky here! Had the time to write another chapter to read bright and early in the morning (well according to us Brits it is the morning!). Had some time and thought 'Why not?'**

**So go ahead and check it out!**

**/yadahyadahyadah/ - Yugi/Ryou's thoughts**

**/yadahyadahyadah/- Pharaoh/Yami Bakura's thoughts**

* * *

This is one of my favourite Yu-Gi-Oh! episodes because of how funny all the characters are in here. It isn't my most favourite, but I like it!

Aftermath: Chapter 2

The Pharaoh looked at his friends as they babbled on about their adventures in the past.

_/I'm really going to miss them.../_

_/Er Pharaoh, I mean Atem. I promise one of these days I'll get used to that name of yours. It's hard to believe that after all these years you have your memories back!/_

_/Thanks to you/_

The group continued chatting about their recent adventure, oblivious to Seto Kaiba watching them.

Kaiba gazed at the Millennium Eye in his palm, the reason he had come to Egypt in the first place. He then looked at the geek squad. His mind had been made up.

'Hey Yugi...' He called out

Tea, Tristan, Joey and Pharaoh all turned round to see Kaiba, who then tossed something at Pharaoh. Pharaoh caught it and looked at it in shock. The Millennium Eye.

'I believe you'll be needing that!' Kaiba grumbled before strutting away.

'The Millennium Eye?' Tea said questioningly.

'Hey where did you get your hands on that, rich boy?' Joey yelled, but Kaiba continued to walk without any acknowledgement.

'Kaiba!' Pharaoh said sternly, but also found to be ignored.

'Hey! You don't just chuck a Millennium item at someone and walk away!' Joey growled. 'I'm sick of your silent treatment routine!'

And that was when Kaiba paused.

'If your sick of my silent treatment, then why not try the running treatment instead?' Kaiba asked with one of those rare smiles he didn't give out often.

With that, he bolted up the stairs.

'Kaiba!' The group said in unison.

They all then ran up the ancient stone stairs as fast as their legs would carry them.

'I'll show him, running treatment!' Joey panted whilst running.

They all stopped when they saw Kaiba standing still at what seemed the thousandth step.

'Looks like rich boy couldn't handle giving out the running treatment!' Joey jeered with Tristan.

Pharaoh's eyes narrowed.

/_Yugi, I sense something very wrong has happened/_

/_I know! Kaiba wouldn't just stop! He wouldn't give in to anything!/_

Kaiba, what is it?' Pharaoh asked nervously.

Kaiba turned around. 'See for yourself.' He said blankly before stepping down the steps to allow them to see.

'Its Ryou and... Bakura... but how can this be?' Pharaoh said anxiously.

'Ryou!' Tea said in concern, before running over. Joey and Tristan followed her lead. Pharaoh and Kaiba however let their gaze wander to Bakura.

'How did they end up like this?' He said quietly.

'Well don't ask me! I've only just started believing in this magic nonsense!' Kaiba grumbled.

Pharaoh walked over to the spirit. He noticed the smile on his face. A little bit of doubt came in his mind, but he brushed it away. He would worry about that later. Right now they needed their help.

_/Atem, let me take over. I need to talk to Ryou if he comes round/_

_/But Yugi! Bakura is dangerous! I don't want any harm to fall on you if he wakes!/_

/_I'll be fine, just trust me_/

The Millennium puzzle glowed as Yugi took over. Yugi opened his purple eyes. He looked at the Bakura, a little fear washed over him as he remembered their previous encounters.

/_Yugi, you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I can take over if you want/_

/_No! I can do this!_/

'We should get Ryou out of here! He's is burning up!' Joey whispered to Yugi. Yugi turned to see his friend's concern.

'I know, but what about...him? We can't just leave him here. Judging from the way they were next to each other, I think Ryou must have woken up at some point and gone to his Yami. Despite everything, I think he still cares.' Yugi explained.

Joey looked at him oddly for a moment, but then shook his head. 'Fine Yug, but it doesn't mean I like it.' Jory replied, selecting his words carefully.

Tristan and Joey began carrying Ryou up the steps, leaving Yugi,Tea and Kaiba with Bakura.

'Sorry Yugi, but I don't trust that guy. I'm not helping.' Tea looked apologetically at her short friend.

'It's fine Tea, I mean who'd blame you?' Yugi sighed wearily. The trip to the memory world had worn them all out. He watched her walk up the steps to assist Joey and Tristan with Ryou.

Yugi turned to his rival, hoping he'd be of any help. A cold pair of blue eyes met his gaze. Yugi fidgeted around uneasily with his fingers in the silence that hung.

'I'll help you Yugi, but only this once. Don't expect anymore favours.' Kaiba muttered gruffly as he helped Yugi get Bakura up. They climbed the remaining stairs in silence.

* * *

He was being moved, he knew that, but he didn't have the strength to be able to open his eyes to see by who. He was tired and exhausted, not to mention hungry, so he his mind drift off again.

A little while later, he felt consciousness creep to him again, and so did how he felt. His forehead felt as if it were on fire, and his arms and legs were aching. His head throbbed angrily and pounded against his skull.

/_Where am I?..._/

'Where am I?...' He repeated aloud, quietly.

'Hey, Yugi! I think Ryou's up!'

_/Yugi? Is he here too? The voice sounded familiar. Was it... Joey?/_

Ryou forced his eyes open, weary. A blonde haired teen sat by his side.

'Don't worry pal, your with us now! No evil spirits will be meddling with you!' Joey assured him. It only tensed Ryou more.

'Where am I? Where's... where's... Yami?' He mumbled.

/_Why isn't Joey telling me anything?_/

'Yami? Are you talking about that evil spirit? Jeez, you being ill must have really gotten to ya Ryou!'

'Sick... Since when have I been sick? Joey? Where am I? Last thing I remember was being on the steps with Yami...' He said, sitting up.

'Woah! Where do you think your going? Ryou, we're at Yugi's Ryou! Your... Yami is in bed. He still hasn't come round...' Joey said pushing Ryou back into bed.

'I have to see him! He wasn't well when I last saw him! You have to let me!' Ryou protested climbing out of bed. He instantly regretted this however, as he fell to his knees. He huffed in anger, making his newly found headache grow even more painful.

'Ryou, you've been out for days since we found you! Kaiba ordered one of his choppers to come and get us out of Egypt and back at Domino! Your... Yami... He's still not come round, but he's fine. Gramps patched him up a bit. He had a few injuries. Other than that he's perfectly fine Ryou, no need to get all hyped up about it!' Joey said helping him back up.

Ryou felt a slight irritation spike up in his heart and his headache worsened. He knew Joey was just making sure he was okay, but honestly, he was old enough to take care of himself. He didn't need to be babied around. Just as he was going to ask something, a spiky tri-coloured haired kid ran into the room with concern written all over his face.

'Joey, I heard you call! Is Ryou o-' Yugi began before seeing Ryou's arm slung over Joey's neck as he was helped get into bed again. 'Ryou! Are you okay?' He exclaimed. He ran over to his aid and helped him into bed.

Ryou began to get annoyed again. A sudden anger urged to explode, and he couldn't hold it in anymore.

'I'm fine Yugi! I'm old enough to take care of myself!' He yelled a little too loudly. When he finished, he realize he had hurt Yugi's feelings. A wave of sorrow hit him.

'Yugi, I'm so sorry for yelling...' He said, feeling a pang in his heart that he didn't like. Yugi didn't respond, keeping his eyes locked onto the ground. Ryou felt his neck grow heavy from shame as his face burned in embarrassment of his actions. He then realized what he thought had been shame was actually his Millennium Ring. It was emitting strange dark matter. It wasn't like that before. His headache had gotten so bad, he couldn't even think straight. Then he realized his whole body began feeling heavy. His eyelids drooped and before he knew it, he was out again.

'Ryou isn't normally like that, Yug. What do you think happened to him?' Joey said quietly.

'I don't know Joey, but did you see his eyes before he went out again? They seemed to be encased in darkness. I think something's wrong Joey...' Yugi mumbled. The two gazed at their friend as he lay in bed.

'I guess we should go then...'

/_Wait! Yugi, does he still have the Millennium Ring?/_

Yugi stopped.

'Hey, Joey? You go ahead, I'll catch on with you later.' Yugi called.

'Okay Yugi, just be on the look out. I have a feeling something is on its way, and it ain't good.' Joey said solemnly before walking away.

When Joey left, Yugi crept cautiously to his unconscious friend, taking care not to make much noise. He looked at Ryou properly. His face had gone pale and he had definitely lost even more weight since the first time they'd met. He lifted hid blanket, and sure enough, the Millennium Ring was there, resting on his chest. However, there was something odd about it that made him frown. It shadows seemed to have attached themselves to it, and there was something evil and ominous about it Yugi couldn't lay a finger on. He made a motion to touch it, but Pharaoh appeared in his semi-transparent form next to him.

_/Yugi, be careful. I have a bad feeling about that Ring.../_

_/Don't worry Pharaoh. It can't do to much harm now can it?/_

_/Just be careful/_

Yugi held his breath as he touched it. Images raced through his mind that he didn't remember experiencing before. He felt anger surge from it, along with hate, and anguish. Hints of sadness thrust themselves along with the party of emotions. He managed to make out something before it disappeared completely: a young man screaming into empty space, and that young man had wild white hair, narrow eyes, and a black trench coat that fell to his knees.

Yugi fell to the floor as he pieced together what he had just seen, slightly stunned.

/_Yugi! Are you alright?_/

It took a moment for his slight shock to subside.

'Y-Yes, I'm fine. Pharaoh, I think Bakura is the cause of all this. He's just experienced something that caused a lot of anger inside him, and because of his bond with Ryou, some of his anger influenced Ryou's own emotions and stressed him out so much he passed out. We should go check on him, Pharaoh. Something has happened! Something very bad!' Yugi said aloud to his Yami, before running off to the the room next door

* * *

**Before anyone starts flaming, I know I didn't write very well in this chapter. When I first started the chapter in the morning I only wrote a bit before having to go somewhere. After that I was pretty stressed out. Lets just say a lots been on my mind and writing this wasn't easy, but I just felt like it. I'll try and do a redo in the future. Right now, I just want to go to bed despite the fact its 7:30 PM, so seeya.**

**-YamiB1999 **

**P.S**

**I'll try writing more chapters every Saturday and Friday evening ;)**


	3. Freaky Flashbacks

**APOLOGY**

**Hey guys...**

**Okay, I am REALLY sorry to those few who had taken interest into my story Aftermath. A ton of things happened over the holidays that took over all my time, and writing on fanfic was the last thing on my mind.**

**First, I moved house, and because of that I had no internet for over five weeks. Second, my baby sis got born, early. So she came premature and that was raving hell for like two weeks till she got out of the hospital and I finally got to go back to my newly-moved-in-house. Thirdly, last week, I had a homework crisis. My Pops had to keep writing notes to my teacher of why I couldn't do homework due to internet related issues and I was trying to do as much as I could from the non-internet related stuff, which were all tests and assessed junk. Yay...**

**Let's just say my holidays wasn't what I'd planned. **

**However, there was an up. I got a new laptop for Christmas (yes, I did get a laptop during a crazy holiday). Pretty slick and fast, tons of memory. Perfect for a writer.**

**I should really stop drabbling and let you guys enjoy the next chapter. Go on, enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Freaky Flashbacks:  
Yugi sprinted out of Ryou's room and toward Bakura's, his Millennium Puzzle dangling wildly on the cord around his neck. Yugi knew something was very wrong. So wrong, he couldn't describe how wrong. He knew that there was a very good reason why Ryou had yelled at him, and it wasn't because of him simply being angry. It was because Bakura had been angry beyond measure, and due to the bond the two had, it had influenced Ryou's emotions. It also proved the Pharaoh's theory of the two still having soul rooms in the same area, even though the two had separate bodies now. Who knew what havoc Bakura was causing in his soul room to have it leak out into Ryou's. He had to get there and stop Bakura, no matter what.

As he skidded by the door, he gazed at the brass, round handle his small hand had reached out to. He remembered when they first bought Bakura into his home, five days ago. He remembered how they had seen a portion of the havoc Bakura could muster. The summoning of Zorc appeared to be a joke compared to the shred of Bakura's shadow magic...

* * *

'Hey Yug! Can you help me here? This guy is way heavier than Ryou.' Joey panted as he did his best to heave up the still unconscious Bakura from the car. Ryou was still in the car.

The crew had decided to leave the Pharaoh's homeland early due to both Ryou and Bakura's states. It only seemed right. Ishizu, Marik and Odion had told them that the resting place of the Seven Millennium Items could also be reached from Domino City by boat. The lot had decided to wait a while before going however, to spend some time with the Pharaoh for the last time, and let Ryou and Bakura recover.

'Okay Joey!' Yugi called back. He immediately stopped helping Tea with the luggage and ran over to aid his friend.

He stopped for a second as he felt his alter ego wanting to talk through the mind link. Yugi enabled him to do so by allowing his defences of the 'Mind-Block' to fall temporarily. Ever since their trek in the Memory World, he had been on high alert of anyone trying to get into his mind, or Millenium Puzzle, because that was where they had found out Bakura had used the Millennium Puzzle to go to the Memory World with the Pharaoh. He watched as a semi-transparent form of the Pharaoh emerged next to him.

/\ Yugi, let me take over. I don't trust Bakura/\

/ I'll be fine, Atem. He can't do much harm, surely!/

/\ Okay, but if anything happens, you have to let me take over, Yugi. I cannot risk you getting hurt/\

/ I'll be fine!/

Yugi sighed, shaking his head slightly. The Pharaoh could be so over protective at times. He had to know he was capable of doing these things. He'd gone through everything the Pharaoh had these past years they'd spent together. There was no reason for him not being able to do such a simple task.

He continued to walk over to Joey, who had now gotten Bakura out of the car and was struggling to stay upright. It would have been an amusing sight, had it not been for how frightening Bakura was. Even in his unconcious state, he was scary. His wild white hair was as wild as ever. And then the sharp features. Everything about him scared him. Despite him having similar features with Ryou's, there was no way he had the same soft, kind eyes and warm smile Ryou had. There was no way they could be alike.

When he finally reached, he helped Joey out by taking an arm (which certainly wasn't an easy task for someone as short as him) and dragged him to his Grandpa's game shop. Bakura's head lolled around helplessly, and his arm hung down his shoulder, down near his Millennium Puzzle. Yugi ignored this and carried on helping.

Just when they reached the door, Bakura's pale tapped against the Millennium Puzzle as the steps were a hassle for the two boys and they roughly brought him up the steps.

The Spirit began to stir.

* * *

He knew where it was. And he was close, so very close! Millimeters away from it. He had touched it for the very first time, and felt its ultimate power pulsing within. He wanted it more than anything, yet he felt ragged and exhausted.

What had happened to him?

Bakura felt a sensation of de-ja-vu. Hadn't something like this happened before? Yes, something had! He remembered. On the steps, with his hikari. But where was he now?Bakura winced as his hair got tugged. With great annoyance, he opened his eyes, and blinked several times as he got used to the bright surroundings. He certainly wasn't at the steps anymore.

Someone was holding his arm. Both arms. He turned his head slightly. A boy with a mop of blonde hair and brown eyes. The dolt, Wheeler. Why was he here? He turned his head the other way, with more power. Tri-coloured hair and friendly magenta eyes. The Pharaoh's brat. Anger surged through him. He was not going to be carried around by a dope and a brat.

He tugged his arms with all his strength. Nothing happened, except for a wave of pain from one of his arms, making him cringe. They didn't even acknowledge it. He scowled in more annoyance. Why was he so weak? That was when he realized how empty he felt. Where was his shadow magic? Usually, he'd feel it pulsing through him like blood, yet now, everything was simply, gone. Then he remembered. Zorc was gone, because of the stupid Pharaoh, and, would that mean shadow magic was gone too? No, it couldn't be. Zorc created the shadow realm, and therefore shadow magic, but him being gone simply meant he was gone. Not the shadow realm, or it's magic, but then where was it?

He went out of his body for a moment and travelled to his soul room.

* * *

When he arrived, he gazed around the room he had been in for five thousand years. It still looked the same, but it looked tired. There was no other way to describe it. It must be feeling the way he was. Who knew, Soul Room's had emotions. He brushed the thought aside with a slight smirk on his face and walked over to an old table. On it lay a few leather bound books, papers with notes and diagrams scribbled all over them. And there lay a scroll at the side.

A scroll of black parchment, with white inscriptions. He unravelled it and stroked the text with affection. It was still there, he just needed to murmur the words to reactivate it, like he had done when he used Ryou as a host for the first time.

He deciphered the text with little difficulty, and before long, he had read the writing. He began to feel darkness twist itself around his legs and arms, and before long he felt restored and full. He gave a twisted smile as he made his leave of his soul room and back to his body. Before going, he paused for a moment. The door to his hikari's soul room should be on the otherside of his door.

He walked and turned the handle, opened the door. He let out a low chuckle.

A simple white door with a basic silver handle was there before him. His hikari was probably there. He remembered him being out cold on the stairs. He doubted he had still come round yet. The weakling couldn't survive being without food for five days! Him on the other hand, could last weeks.

He could mess with his hikari later, for now he was close to a Millennium Puzzle. Even if the great Zorc Necrophades was gone, that didn't mean he could stop getting power and reaching to the top. He had waited five thousand years for someone to pick up the Millennium Ring so he could claim them as a host. He could wait more, and even if it took him another five millennia. Yet now, there was a golden chance, and he wasn't going to let it go.

Bakura quietly shut his ancient door and travelled back to his body from his soul room.

* * *

He snapped open his eyes with ease this time and looked around. The fools were about to go up the stairs to the next floor. They still hadn't managed. He wanted mirth with laughter at the imbeciles about how idiotic and weak they were, but he didn't. Instead, he reached out for his shadow magic and gave a wicked smile as he felt his power surging back to him. He could literally feel it begging him to unleash it from his fingertips.

And so he did.

* * *

'Woah! Yug! What's going on!' Joey squealed as a mass of black matter stumped him down. Yugi was about to reply before getting knocked down by a stake of dark matter.

He whipped a glance and saw Bakura stood before him in full height and glory. He gazed into those maniacal eyes of him. They had lost their browness and had transformed into greyish-black, little bits of black electricity cracking around in his irises . They gazed back. Yugi tried his best not to show any fear and built on his 'Mind-Block' defences.

He gave a quick glance to his left and saw Joey cowering against with a shadow-summoned Necrofear.

'Why hello again, Yugi. How's your friend the Pharaoh? How do you feel about him leaving you forever? What do you think I'll do to you once you're all alone?' Bakura said in his mocking tone, arms crossed.

Before Yugi could even reply, he felt the powerful force of the Pharaoh urging to break free.

/\ I am sorry Yugi, but this is far too dangerous for you to handle anymore./\

Yugi wanted to oblige, but gave in. He felt himself being dragged to the back seat. Like he normally would in duels. He knew the Pharaoh was just protecting him, but honestly. Everyone babied him around because of his shortness. Shortness didn't make him incapable of doing anything. Or maybe it did.

Maybe, he just wasn't capable of anything. After all, he didn't have any friends before the Pharaoh came, not one. He was shy, often unnoticed, and never acknowledged of. Maybe that was what he was normally like. Maybe, this was the reason the Pharaoh came, to protect him and give him courage. What he hadn't realized was that he was using the courage, not him. What if, he didn't deserve the title as 'King of Games'. That was Atem's, not his. And what if when Atem left, his friends would leave him, and he'd be all alone again. The thought clung onto his heart and he felt wounded. The what ifs continued to plague him.

The Pharaoh had probably heard his thoughts, because he suddenly felt a little guilt from his partner.  
Yugi gave a sigh. Why had everything gone topsy-turvy all of a sudden? It was all perfectly fine till now. Yugi continued to be plagued by what ifs as he watched from the sidelines in a semi-transparent form.

* * *

The Pharaoh took control quickly as Bakura began to take action. The process was quick, and with a flash from the Millennium Puzzle, they had swapped places. Before him stood the thief, Bakura. He began to go on into thought.

How had he been able to come into power so quickly? Just moments ago he was weak and helpless, unconscious, and being taken upstairs for rest. Yet now, he was using all the shadow magic in his power to attack them. The change in a few seconds shocked him.

He was about to start talking when he felt annoyance and anger come from his aibou. Yugi. He'd just taken control without seeing whether he was comfortable with what he had just planned. He quickly peered in his thoughts and instantly felt guilty. Yugi thought he thought that he wasn't capable of doing things. His aibou thought he, Atem, was the person with the courage, and when he would leave, so would all his other friends. The Pharaoh felt guilty and sorrowful for his partner, and promised to himself that he would apologise once he'd dealt with Bakura. He knew these little things meant a lot to Yugi.

The Pharaoh stood up to full height, and gazed at his enemy with great confidence and anger.  
'Bakura, why are you doing this? We have defeated Zorc. You no longer have any purpose to be causing trouble now!' He snarled at him. Bakura just gave one of his maniacal laughs before showing a mad glint in his eyes.

'I thought you did have a brain under all that spiky hair Pharaoh! When I saw all those complicated passages in your 'soul room' I thought you were clever. I guess I was sadly mistaken,' Bakura said, continuing his mockery ,'as for your stupid question, there is a very good reason why I am causing havoc. You see, just because Zorc is gone, doesn't mean I can't stop looking for power. The whole reason why I summoned him was to gain power in exchange for your death!' He spat, pointing his finger at him.

Outside, the sky darkened as clouds moved in, adding to the dark theme going on.

'Where are you going to get that power from, Bakura? I understand that Zorc Necrophades could give you power, but how will you get power from nothing? How do you expect bring over a few shadow tricks here will give you power? If you ask me, your wasting it.' Atem replied, his eyes shining. He diverted attention to his left where he saw Yugi, who gave a sad smile and nodded to him to carry on. His guilt grew on.

Atem then brought his vision toward Bakura, who seemed to be at a loss for words. He began muttering some thing incoherently, as if trying to work out what to say, before giving him a venemous stare.

'Maybe I was wrong,' Bakura said, in a very small voice, lowering his head so his hair was covering his eyes ,'Maybe, all of this wasn't just for power. No, it was also for revenge.' He growled, his voice growing with every word. Atem saw his hands shaking.

'You-You killed them. You killed them all. Poor people of Kul-Elna. Your everyday people, like your brat. Like my stupid hikari. Like those stupid people you call friends. I used to have friends just like yours ,Pharaoh. But you took all that away from me. You murdered them to make these treacherous Millennium Items. Well, I've got something to tell you Pharaoh. I'll use the items you made against you!' Bakura roared, before unleashing every ounce of shadow magic he possessed. He began laughing maniacally as the Millennium Ring began to glow. Lightening crackled outside and added to the sinister effect.

As Bakura began laughing away like a maniac, the insides of Grandpa's Game Shop were twisted around as a tornado of shadow magic took form. Cards began to blow away from shelves and a heavy box fell from a shelf and hit a glass case, shattering it instantly. Bits of glass flew everywhere. The Pharaoh felt a small thought of concern.

He wondered if Grandpa had insurance to cover all of this, and if he didn't, he wondered if he could afford the expenses of all the damage.

Atem clung onto a heavy bookshelf to stop himself from blowing into the tornado of black magic. He didn't know what evil lurked within, and he wasn't risking hurting himself, as both he and Yugi shared the body, and hurting himself would hurt Yugi as well. He watched as Joey began squealing and holding the door handle for dear life.

The entire shop appeared to be shaking. Atem didn't know what to do. Sooner or later, this black magic wasn't just going to affect him and Joey, but many others. He had to stop Bakura, but how?

/ Atem, use the Millennium Puzzle. He's using shadow magic by using his own Millennium Ring, then you can use your Puzzle to do something too! You are the Pharaoh after all!/

The Pharaoh smiled at Yugi's encouragement and advice. He couldn't understand why he didn't have friends in the first place. Yugi was kind hearted and friendly, and a nice person to be with. Skilled with games and carefree, why was he so lonely before?

Before he could go into further thought, his aibou, Yugi, had come over to him, and his semi-transparent hands were around Atem's Puzzle. He gave one last smile before disappearing. Atem sighed a little, and then held his Puzzle.

/\ Puzzle, you've helped me a great deal in the past. Please help me this time as well. Please let me stop this evil/\

He gasped slightly as he saw a glow come from his puzzle, followed by the side of his belt. The little bag that was attached to it. Of course! He could shadow-summon monsters. Instead of holograms, real monsters could do much more damage.

He carefully took out his deck whilst holding onto the bookshelf. He flicked through his cards and found a few cards that could assist him. His old friend, Mahad, the Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, Red Eyes Black Dragon, the card Joey had given him. He gave a warm smile, and remembered their adventures in Battle City. It seemed like a millennia ago.

Finally, there were the God cards. He wasn't sure if he should use them. It could seriously hurt Bakura, and maybe destroy the remains of Grandpa's shop. But, what if Bakura defeated his other monsters? He had a few other monsters, but not many as strong and powerful. He frowned in thought and glanced at what Bakura was doing. He seemed to be harnessing the magic to create something. A form of a beast of some sort began to appear that he didn't recognize. He had to act now before it was too late.

'I shadow-summon the Dark Magician! Dark magic attack!' Atem yelled with all his might.  
Bakura stopped what he was doing and gave a slight look of horror before resuming to his usual cunning look. He gazed at the card held within Atem's fingers tightly, as the tornado of shadow magic continued. The card gave soft glow, and then the Dark Magician came before him. The Pharaoh gave a warm smile at his old friend. Mahad returned one.

Mahad, the Dark Magician twirled his minty staff round and pointed it straight at Bakura.

* * *

He stared in shock as his enemy from the past, Mahad, was summoned before him. This wasn't going well at all! The Pharaoh summoning him wasn't good at all, it would foil all the work and effort he had put into releasing all his shadow magic. No! He would not let the Pharaoh ruin his plans anymore!

But it was already too late, as he watched the Dark Magician twirl his staff and strike. He couldn't move. For the first time, he was scared. In Egypt, in the Memory World, it was different. That was the past, and a long time ago, but this was the present day. There was nothing he could do. Fear ensnared itself around his legs and rooted him to the spot. He stood there, for the first time afraid as the Dark Magician, Mahad struck him.

When he felt the blow, it was as if he'd been electrocuted, the dark magic snaking it's way through his system. He gasped for the breath he'd been robbed of. His breath continued to be ragged. Bakura staggered and clung onto the counter for support. The storm he'd created began to calm a little, but he wasn't going to let it die down. The shadow beast he had attempted to summon, however, faded into the darkness.

'Is... is that... the best you've got... eh, Pharaoh?' He jeered, laughing slightly. He was still out of breath.

'Bakura, you don't have to do this. Just let it go,' The Pharaoh said gently, making his way over to the him,'I know it's hard for you, but-'

'YOU DO NOT KNOW! HOW CAN YOU OF ALL PEOPLE UNDERSTAND?' Bakura shouted, thrusting away the hand the Pharaoh had let out to him. He glared daggers at him, still heaving. 'You, you can never understand how I feel! I will never let go of what you did to the people of Kul-Elna!' He said, pointing at the Pharaoh with loathing eyes.

Bakura stood up, in full height, hair still being whipped around by the strong winds that were intertwined with the shadow magic. He watched the pathetic Pharaoh step away from him. Fearing him. He gave a merciless laugh at how weak he looked. No longer would he suffer the humiliation of having the Pharaoh foil his genius work. No longer would he watch the Pharaoh and his friends triumph. He was going to end his reign short.

He began to concentrate and focus on something special he had reserved just for the Pharaoh. It wasn't your everyday trick out of the old hat. This was special. He'd been planning on using it for quite a while, and finally, now after all these years he'd be able to use it. It was called 'The Eater of Souls', and when this creature was brought into the world, it would eat the soul of one living being desired by the summoner, before returning it's place back in the shadow realm. Once the creature had eaten the soul, the soul itself would diminish and die. That was how he had wanted the Pharaoh to come to an end. To leave the world forever and never to return. No remaining spirit, no soul or ghost. Nothing.

Bakura gave a twisted smile. Of course, there would be a need of a sacrifice for him to summon him. He'd need to give away some of his power and energy, but it would all be worth it. With his revenge, his cold heart would finally be in peace, and he would have the Pharaoh out of the way. His path for power would be clear. And he continued on his course of summoning the Eater of Souls.

* * *

Ryou woke up exhausted in a stiff position. Despite being a little sore, everything was warm and cosy, and he felt comfortable. He was in a car, probably being driven back from the cinema trip he and his Father were going to earlier. He closed his eyes, wanting to sleep some more. Maybe that would get rid of his exhaustion. He yawned slightly before slowly drifting back to sleep.

'Ryou! Ryou! You have to wake up right now! They're in trouble!' A voice yelled in terror.  
No... not trouble. Not again. There wasn't meant to be any of that anymore! Wait, anymore of trouble? Did that mean he'd experienced it before?... Yes, he had! It was coming back to him! The Ring, his Father had given to him... there was a Spirit in it. It made him do things he didn't like. Took control of his body. He had been a host, a hikari.

He remembered.

Ryou snapped his eyes open. A pair of terrorized blue eyes met his sleepy brown eyes.

'Tea...?'

'Ryou! Thank goodness your awake! Its, its him again! The Spirit, Bakura. He- I don't know what he's doing in Grandpa's game shop, but it's bad! The Yugi and Joey are in there! I need your help to save them!' Tea cried out.

'Wait, he's, he's... Oh no! Tea we have to go there right away! Who knows what my Yami is doing there!' He said, in a scratchy voice. His throat felt like sawdust.

He carefully got out of the car, feeling slightly light headed. He still hadn't had food for so many days. His eyes drooped slightly and his legs threatened to give away. No! He wouldn't give in... he had to stop him.

'L-lets go.' He said shakily.

Tea ran over to the shop, whilst Ryou wobbled around a bit, before walking in a brisk pace. He felt annoyed a little. Why did the Spirit never have anything to eat? And how could he be up and about in ease whilst he was dropping around? He brushed his thoughts away as he went into the shop. His mouth hung in a perfect 'O' and his eyes were as wide as saucers when he saw the sight before him.

The whole place had been trashed; cards littering the floors, glass cases smashed, and figurines rolling around on the floor. And then there was the darkness that hung around the room, not to mention the indoor tornado. He clung onto the coat around him as he shivered. He realized what he was wearing- the black trench coat. He shivered even more.

At the back of the completely destroyed store, he saw Joey clinging onto the door, all glee and jolliness had left him and true fear manifested his eyes. On the right, he saw the Pharaoh holding onto an oak bookshelf, along with the Dark Magician. Wait, how had the Pharaoh summoned the Dark Magician without a duel disk? He got rid of the thought and looked to the left. He took a sharp breath. His Yami. What had happened to his eyes? They were jet black, and why did he look all... destroyed? And what was he doing?

As he continued to wonder, Tea had ran over to Joey. Ryou could only continue to watch and wonder.

'Joey! Are you okay!' She squeaked and pulled Joey up, who was completely freaked out. He flinched when Tea even clutched his hand.

'Waaaah! T-T-Tea? Is that really you!' He cried in relief. He literally hugged her from happiness. When he realized what he was doing, he let go, blushing slightly. 'Things haven't been right back here, Tea... it's been freaky. All sorts of bad things.' Joey babbled. His eyes showed fear and slight craziness, and on the edge. Tea took him outside before he did anything else crazy.

Ryou looked in horror. Joey wasn't normally like that at all, he was happy, humorous and jolly. What he saw before him, that was not Joey Wheeler. What had his Yami done? He knew he still had good inside him, but this, he had gone too far. Bakura had to be stopped, right there, right at that moment.

'Bakura! Stop! Stop all of this!' Ryou yelled. He suddenly felt slightly shy and embarrassed as both the Pharaoh and his Yami turned to look at him. Bakura gave him a glare as if to back off, but didn't say anything. His eyes seemed strangely cloudy, and his attention seemed to be somewhere else. The Pharaoh looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

'Bakura, you have to stop all of this- it, it isn't right.' Ryou said, trying to sound confident, but cringed at how scratchy his voice was.

'Looks like my hikari has grown himself a backbone!' Bakura finally said, giving a maniacal laugh. Ryou stood at the doorway gazing down at his blue trainers feeling unbelievably uncomfortable.

'Unfortunately hikari, I cannot be stopped. I've already finished on bringing over a friend of mine. He's known as 'The Eater of Souls'!' He said, as if he really were sad. He turned away and clicked his fingers.

An ear-splitting screech came from behind the bookshelf. The Pharaoh got so scared he fell onto the floor.

The tornado of shadow magic had stopped now. The screeching continued. Ryou clutched his ears and scrunched his eyes up. Bakura cackled. The Bookshelf shook. Screeching. Cackles. Shaking.

The bookshelf exploded into hundreds of wooden chips as a jagged-tooth monster appeared before them.

'The Pharaoh is your dinner, Soul Eater. Why don't you go and get him?' Bakura said lovingly to the monstrous creature, whilst stroking its frightening head, before letting it run free. He skidded around in excitement, the red eyes bulging and tail swishing as if it were a fish. The Soul Eater screeched happily in a sinister manner as it closed in on the Pharaoh.

Ryou realized what was happening and sprinted towards the Pharaoh. He had gone through so much and was about to go to the afterlife, and all that, for nothing. He'd be taken as something nourishing for the blasted 'Soul Eater'. He growled at his other half in loathing. Ryou didn't understand why he had to do such ridiculous things to gain power. Couldn't he just simply ask some Egyptian Sorcerer or something for power? Why did he have to kill the Pharaoh for? And why did he even need power in the first place? Many people lived perfect and happy lives without power!

He stopped at a halt as he was by the mighty Pharaoh. He had stood up in slight shock and seemed to not know what to do. He gazed at the Soul Eater, that came closer and closer at each passing second. He appeared to have given up.

No! He wouldn't let him give up! Yet the Soul Eaterwas there! There was nothing else to do. The Pharaoh was quintillion times more important than him, a pathetic hikari. A Yadonashi. A host for an evil spirit. Helpless, weak, and useless. He blinked away his tears. He may be weak, he may be helpless, and he may be useless, but he wouldn't let that stop him today. He would stop his dark if it took his own soul.

Ryou took one look at the Pharaoh, then at the Spirit that had claimed his body as his own for the past four years. He scrunched his eyebrows in frustration and anger, but then let out a small sigh. His life would never be a happy one. He'd just be an old memory soon to be forgotten. Oh well, at least the Pharaoh would be safe...

When the Soul Eater was a meter away, flying at top speed with midnight bat wings, Ryou took action. His faced contorted into a snarl as he saw Ryou, slowly walking in front of the helpless looking Pharaoh. It wouldn't pleasant having your soul be viciously mauled by a scary shadow creature, but nevermind. How bad could it possibly be?

And so, Ryou took a stand before the creature, the 'Eater of Souls', and looked it in the eye. The creature screeched angrily as it wasn't able to steer away. The creature squawked in terror as he was about to crash into Ryou. Ryou looked at it solemnly.

And they collided.

* * *

Bakura looked in horror at the scene before him. His hikari couldn't have that much courage to face a Soul Eater! His soul would be ripped into shreds! It was as delicate as paper! NO! He wouldn't allow this! He wouldn't- couldn't!

Only he could hurt his little light. No one else.

Bakura bolted over to the Soul Eater, which was nearly there. Why would his Yadonashi even save the worthless Pharaoh? He couldn't understand, but he had to throw that thought away now. The creature had reached. The two had collided.

'NOOOO!' Bakura yelled. It was too late. All to late. He was gone. Forever. Never to be seen or heard of again.

Wait... was he mourning? He never mourned for anyone, but himself. Yet... he would miss the way he smiled, or those warm, kind, brown eyes of his.

Bakura sighed and covered his eyes with his hands as blinding light exploded. His hair whipped around him. But he didn't do it because of the light. He did it because he couldn't stand to see his hikari. It was too sad. And his last words to him was 'Unfortunately hikari, I cannot be stopped. I've already finished on bringing over a friend of mine. He's known as 'The Eater of Souls'!' What sort of send off was that? He probably hated him for all this. He left hating him. That hurt. It hurt a lot. But he didn't understand why...

'Bakura! He's still here... help me...' A voice said in a tiredly. Bakura whipped his head around and saw the Pharaoh's brat. His face was tired, yet his eyes shared another story. Hope. Clothes were burnt slightly, but his hair was fine, save a few loose strands.

'What do you mean?' Bakura replied, trying to keep his voice stable. Why was he like this?

'Ryou... he's still alive...' The brat said slightly faintly.

Alive?

He bolted over at once, hope overwhelming him. Maybe, just maybe, his little hikari, Ryou, was strong. Maybe he survived the impossible. And maybe, he still was alive. And, just maybe, he didn't hate him too much. He prayed his light was okay.

When he reached, he stopped dead in his tracks, and felt so many things at once: relief, anguish, terror, shock, and happiness. He could never understand why he was feeling like that.

'My hikari... Ryou... he's,' Bakura began quietly, crouching to his fallen half ,'He's okay!'

Bakura picked Ryou up gently, as if he were a piece of China, and brought his delicate head toward his shoulder and hugged him with affection. He listened tentatively for a sign of life. And he heard it. Breathing. Slow, yet shallow, nevertheless, breathing. His hikari was alive.

He continued to hold him, for every breath calmed his spirit more. He was so glad he was alive and breathing! But... he'd been struck by the Eater of Souls! There was no possible way he would be the same again after such a blow!

And it was all his fault...

He was about to go into his hikari's Soul Room to check it his soul was fine when the stupid Pharaoh's brat began talking.

'Bakura, I know it must be hard for you, but to stop things like this happening again, you need to let go of the p-' Yugi started to only get cut off.

'Hard? You stupid brat! You think I'm finding this hard? I'm just checking if he is breathing fine and if he's alive, so his Father doesn't go annoying me. He knows I exist! If his son is gone, I will be the one for blame! And in this solid form, I'm sure he can do a lot more than shout around at something he can't see!' Bakura yelled at him in a angry tone. He put Ryou down carefully down on the floor.

He glared at the brat so hard, he flinched slightly and backed away. Served him right! What did he mean, hard? He was just acting a little silly, that's all! Being stuck in your late teens still had its effects!

After bickering away in his mind for a few moments, he heaved a sigh and realized his light would be needing some rest. The ordeal would probably leave him unconscious for many days, weeks maybe. He needed to recover quickly if he was going to be used in his latest schemes.

'Where's your Pharaoh friend gone then, brat? I thought he didn't trust me being near you.' Bakura asked out of interest.

Yugi jumped slightly, realizing that the evil spirit was talking to him, and began to talk rushed. The sight was amusing for the thief.

'H-he got knocked off from the... explosion... of the Soul Eater and Ryou colliding, so, erm, I thought I should take over and let him rest for a bit, to get his strength back.' Yugi babbled, fidgeting with his fingers and avoiding to keep eye contact.

Bakura gave a weak laugh at the way he was acting, but he began to feel exhausted all of a sudden. That was when he realized he was completely out of shadow magic, and the sacrifice of power and energy had taken a lot out of him.

Without knowing what he was doing, Bakura lay down on the cool furnished flooring and gazed at the ceiling tiredly. His breathing had gone shallow and ragged. He was back at square one all over again.

Oh well, this way he could rest and get his shadow magic regenerated. Then he could sought revenge once more. He shut his eyes and let out a sigh. His hikari would be needing help. He would need to make sure he would be taken care of.

'Look after... Ryou for me...' He said wearily with any strength he had left. He was hoping for it to sound sharp and firm, but it instead sounded tired and exhausted, like a dying man's last wish. He wanted to quickly look at Ryou one more time before he drifted off, but his lack of energy took the better of him.

Before he knew it, he was out again for who knew how many days.

* * *

Yugi looked at Bakura who was now officially out. He let out all the tension that had been churning inside him from Bakura's presence. The Spirit wasn't exactly what you'd call safe, unlike the Pharaoh. Yugi turned away from the thief and to his friend Ryou, who was unconscious on the floor.

He had a feeling whatever Bakura had summoned was now gone forever, thanks to his good friend. If it had not been for him, the Pharaoh would've been gone. Yugi promised himself he would return the debt soon one day.

Yugi continued to sit there as he heard voices of his friends come into the building and a clatter of footsteps.

'Yugi! What happened here? The place is trashed!' Tristan exclaimed as he entered the building. He gazed around the destroyed game shop in horror before looking down at Ryou and Bakura.

'Don't tell me. The kookie Spirit of the Ring did all that shadow magic hoo ha and did this.' Tristan grumbled with an annoyed expression. Yugi winced slightly at the way his friend glared at the Spirit. He would've felt sorry had it not been for the catastrophe he had caused.

Yugi gave a sigh before turning to his friend, 'Tristan, I know it looks bad, but we can't just leave him outside. He's been through a lot in the past and that's why he does these things. It's not his fault entirely.'

Tristan gave him a puzzled look before grunting a response of understanding, 'Okay Yugi, but if he does anything like this ever again, don't expect me to help him out anymore.'  
Yugi gave a small smile at him as Tea came in, along with a very flabbergasted Grandpa. Yugi gave his Grandpa an apologetic look before helping Tea with Ryou, as he felt unsafe near the Thief.

He began heaving Ryou up and watched Tristan give an annoyed look at Joey, clearly stating to help him out, but poor Joey screamed and ran past him. Yugi gave a slight chuckle as he watched his firend growl in anger as he had Bakura to take by himself, as Grandpa was far too old and Joey wanted no business with Thief.

Before the lower floor went out of view, Yugi looked at his Grandpa one last time. He was kneeling down and had picked up a card that had fallen out of a little box.  
'Don't worry Arthur, I'm not going to let this card slip away that easily.' He mumbled to himself. Yugi glanced a little more and saw the card in his Grandparent's palm was non other than the Blue Eyes White Dragon- or atleast a ripped one. All those years ago Kaiba had ripped the card to make sure no one could use it against him, but even after that his Grandpa would treasure the card as if it were still whole. It made Yugi smile warmly.

* * *

Yugi gazed at the brass door knob before him. It was now or never. He turned the handle and stepped into the room...

* * *

**Again, I'm really sorry guys. I will try and update on the usual Friday and maybe Saturday. Thanks for reading.**

**I would appreciate a review as I spent a peroid of six days writing this chapter. I wanted to write more, but you know what happened.**

**Seeya guys soon, hopefully**

**-YamiB1999**


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